"Okay guys, that's it for today. I want you all to go home and mull over how we can execute step one." Gabriella announced at the end of her briefing, much to everyone's relief.
Ortega, who struggled to stay awake the entire time, was especially thrilled. He had given Gabriella his undivided attention from start to finish and felt he deserved some shut-eye.
Dina and Bloom were the first people to exit the room after bidding everyone else goodbye.
"Good job not fallin' asleep guys. If you catch my drift." Dina winked, her mischievous eyes pointing to Gabriella who was currently drinking water from a bottle.
"Sadly, no one does. But I did a good job catching some zzzs, which, for me was pretty awesome!" Selene sang the last part while combing her hair with her fingers.
"Lucky," Eva said with a tired expression.
"What can I say," Selene put a stick of gum in her mouth, "a girl's gotta get her beauty sleep." She chewed with an occasional "pop!" sounding every time her jaw moved.
"You do know she can hear us, right?" Bloom stated, her tone drawled and matter-of-factly.
"So? We got nothing to hide." Eva replied, causing Ortega, who was busy arranging stuff in his bag to raise a brow. He turned and caught sight of the four women chatting with one another as they stood.
Without a word, Ortega waved at them and made his way to the exit. He was so exhausted that he didn't care whether or not they answered his greeting. As he struggled to keep his heavy eyelids open, Ortega wished a comfy bed would magically appear right in front of him.
"New guy," Dina called, folding her arms, "You never slept, did you?"
"No! No, no, no, no." Ortega said in his mind. For a second, he was tempted to ignore Dina and continue his way, but alas, he couldn't. Ever so slowly, he came to a halt.
Ortega drew his lips to a thin line as the ladies now focused on him, he hesitated a bit before answering. "How would you know that? Unless you never slept too."
"..."
"It was just a simple question, no need to be so guarded," Dina smirked.
"I just wanted to say I'm sorry for giving you a hard time. You seem nice when unpleasant stuff isn't pouring out of your mouth."
"Uh... Thanks, I guess." Ortega forced a smile while rubbing the back of his neck, "We good?"
Dina took a few more steps and approached him, her gargantuan frame towering above his, "Nope. At least not yet. Don't know you well enough." She said with a playful shrug.
"Now move, you're in my way."
"Oh, uh... my bad." Ortega stepped to the side and allowed Dina to pass. The fact that he didn't even know he was blocking her path to exit showed how sluggish his brain worked.
He was dead tired.
Bloom followed after Dina, "Good night, chap," she said as she brushed past Ortega.
She was just about to leave when she stopped and faced him. Ortega couldn't tell if she was looking at him because her hair obstructed her eyes.
"As the clock strikes midnight," Bloom began in a hushed tone, "echoes of despair, whisper tales of horrors that linger in the air."
"W-what?" Ortega stuttered, feeling his heart almost give out.
"Just kidding," Bloom's lips curved into a smile, her pale face aglow. The transition was so sudden that Ortega felt he might as well be talking to a cute thirteen-year-old. "I just love poetry, is all. Good night... for real this time." She said, cat-walking out of the office.
Her unpredictable nature left Ortega standing there, wondering if she was truly gone or if she might pop back in with another cryptic verse.
Bloom was an enigma, and that, Ortega thought, made her all the more intriguing.
"Pfft! She had you there," Eva said, a grin spreading across her face.
"I'll say," Selene added, barely managing to suppress her laughter.
"Well, color me embarrassed," Ortega muttered, shaking his head with a rueful smile. The shared amusement lightened the atmosphere, and for a moment, the tension from earlier seemed to dissipate.
"You seem tired..." Selene commented while getting ready to leave.
Slinging his bag across his body, Ortega looked at her, "Aren't you as well? I mean, we've all had a long day today."
"No, you've had a long day." She looked at him as a caring mother would look at her ailing child, "Sorry. I heard about your condition. Can't wrap my mind around what you must be going through right now..."
"Meh, it's life. I can cope." Ortega wore a nonchalant face, "but, can you do me a favor?" He asked, feeling every ounce of sleep vanish from his being.
Talking with Selene was so... Invigorating!
"What?"
"Smile." Ortega walked closer to her and made eye contact, "I'll feel a lot better if you do. Hell, I might even get cured," he said with a genuine expression.
Selene found herself chuckling at his words, "Don't flatter me."
"Oh? Well, it's definitely working! I can feel my superpowers coming back," he added, mirroring her smile with a playful twinkle in his eye.
And the both of them erupted into a session of harmonious laughter, Ortega tried to hold back a yawn as his cheeks hurt from smiling too much and Gabriella, now having emptied her water bottle, grabbed her coat and bade them goodbye.
As she left, however, she sounded a warning;
"Good night, you three. And make sure to tell the others that I want you all at the studio first thing tomorrow," she said, turning the doorknob with a slight frown.
"I'd say this when everyone's around to hear, but I'm not happy with the way this meeting went. I expect better next time we do this... Hope that's clear to you sleepyheads."
The door shut violently behind Gabriella and a brief silence loomed over their heads as they contemplated her words, the feeling of shame creeping into their minds.